Sheet folding and inserting apparatus



March 29, 1966 K. H. WILLS SHEET FOLDING AND INSERTING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 16, 1965 INVENTOR.

KURT H. WILLS ATTORNEYS Ital March 29, 1966 K. H. WILLS SHEET FOLDING AND INSERTING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 16, 1963 INVENTOR.

KURT H. WILLS ATTORNEYS March 29, 1966 K. H. WILLS 3,242,637

SHEET FOLDING AND INSERTING APPARATUS Filed April 16, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG-7 T o I n 5 .4 ml. 2 2

15s I55 34% H 2 H8 zzs 240 Q 240 234 E a 14a j s 230 56 62, Z I 59 6a 55 INVENTOR KURT H. WILLS ATTORNEYS March 29, 1966 K. H. WILLS 3,

SHEET FOLDING AND INSERTING APPARATUS Filed April 16, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 EWQWLMI INVENTOR.

KURT H. WI LLS wwfw? ATTORN EYS United States Patent 3,242,637 SI-EET FOLDING AND INSERTING APPARATUS Kurt H. Wills, R.R. 3, Sidney, Ohio Filed Apr. 16, 1963, Ser. No. 273,470 12 Claims. (Cl. 53-266) This invention relates to apparatus for folding and inserting letters into envelopes for mailing, and particularly to apparatus of this type which is adapted for office use.

An important object of the invention is to prov1de a completely automatic device for folding a letter sized sheet of paper or the like, inserting this folded sheet into an envelope, and subsequently sealing the envelope so that a letter which is ready for mailing is prepared, and more specifically to provide a sheet folder and envelope stuffer which positively controls the positioning and movement of the sheet and envelope at all times.

Another object of this invention is a sheet folding and inserting apparatus of the aforesaid type which is capable of dependable high speed operation and which performs all operations in synchronized and timed relation, and particularly to apparatus which positively feeds both the sheet and envelope into the apparatus in timed relation and in such a manner that additional sheets or envelopes can be added to the stack thereof without disrupting or otherwise interfering with the operation thereof.

A further object of this invention is a sheet folder and inserter which is compact and can easily be mounted on a small table or desk top, and further to apparatus of the aforesaid type which is simple in design for increased dependability and decreased manufacturing costs and which is light in weight so that it can be easily moved.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanyings drawings and appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of the various operations performed by the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view, partially in section, of the apparatus for performing the operation shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is another side elevational view showing the rear side of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side view of the drive mechanism for the apparatus;

FIG. 5 is a somewhat schematic elevation view of another portion of the drive mechanism;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a suction control valve;

FIG. 7 is an end view, partially broken away, of the apparatus looking from right to left in FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is a view of the opposite end of the apparatus, looking from right to left in FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a plan view, partially broken away, of the mechanism for feeding the envelopes into the apparatus;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the feed mechanism for inserting the folded sheet into an envelope;

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the feed mechanism taken essentially along the line 11-11 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary sectional view similiar to FIG. 11 but showing the envelope being fed between the seal-ing rollers; and

FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along the line 1313 of FIG. 7.

introduction Referring to the drawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated, FIG. 1 shows schematically the various operations performed by the invention. The first step indicated by the reference character A, includes the feeding the letter sheet 11 into the feed rollers 12 and 13 by use of a suction roll 14 disposed below a stack of letters 15 or the like. The feed rolls ice 12 and 13 grasp the sheet 11 and move it horizontally to the left, as shown in step B, into the slot 16 formed between the parallel folded plates 17 and 18. The slot 16 has a depth equal to two-thirds of the sheet length so that two-thirds of the sheet 11 is in the slot 16 when the lead-ing edge thereof abuts the bottom plate 21. The feed rollers 12 and 13 continue to move the sheet 11 to the left causing the portion 23 to buckle and move upwardly between the rollers 1-3 and 24 which grasp the portion 23 and move the sheet 11 upwardly into the folding slot 25 between the upper fold plates 27 and 28 for creasing the portion 23, thus forming the first fold in the sheet 11.

The slot 25 has a depth equal to one-third the length of the sheet 11, and feed rolls 13 and 24 force the sheet into the slot 25 until the folded edge 23 abuts the stop plate 30 at the end of the slot 25 causing the portion 31 of the sheet 11 to buckle (step C) in substantially the same manner as the portion 23. As the portion 3 1 buckles, the sheet 11 is drawn between the feed rollers 24 and 32 which grasp the sheet 11 and move it horizontally to the left thus completing the folding of the sheet 11. As shown in step D, the rollers 34 and 35 continue to move the folded sheet horizontally to the left.

As the folding operation is completed, the suction device 38 grasps an envelope 40 having its flap 41 open and facing upwardly, and moves the same to the right, as indicated in step E. A jet of air 43 is provided for opening the envelope 40 so that as the feed rollers 34 and 35 move the folded sheet 11 to the left, the leading edge 31 thereof passes above the flap 41 and partially into the envelope. At this point, the suction roll 45 grasps the folded sheet 11 and forces it the remaining distance into the envelope 40 which is being held stationary by the suction device 38. Thus the folded sheet 11 has been stuffed completely into the envelope 40 (step F).

Next the knife blade is moved downwardly to engage the envelope 40 along the fold line 51 between the body of the envelope 40 and the flap 41 for vertically forcing the envelope 44} between the sealing rollers 52 and 53, as shown in step F. This action causes the envelope 40 to be drawn vertically downward (step G), and at the same time the heated sealing roller 53 effects a sealing action between the flap 41 and the envelope 40 so that the envelope 40 is closed and ready for mailing.

Housing and sheet feed The apparatus for performing the operations described above is shown in FIGS. 2 through 11, and includes two parallel spaced sides plates 55 and 56 (FIG. 7) which are interconnected by the upper and lower horizontal bars 57, 58, 59, 60, and 61, as seen in FIG. 2. The rubber support feet 62, preferably four in number, are suitably secured on the lower support bars 59 and 60 for mounting the apparatus on a fiat surface, such as a small table or desk top. Each of the side plates 55 and 56 has a cover 63 and 64 secured thereto (FIG. 7) for enclosing the operating components of the apparatus to improve the esthetic characteristics of the apparatus, as well as to protect these components from damage and dirt. The covers 63 and 64 are easily removed in a conventional manner for access to the operating components for maintenance and repair.

The horizontal feed table 65 is secured by the bar 61 between the side plates 55 and 56 at the right end of the apparatus, as shown in FIG. 2, for supporting the stack 15 of paper sheets 11 or the like. The left end of the stack 15 is held in alignment by contact with the vertical wall 68 of the top cover 70 which also extends between the side plates 55 and 56, and the vertical side plates 55 and 56 abut the sides of these sheets and further hold them in alignment. A feed channel 71 is provided he tween the left end of feed table 65 and the horizontal guide plate 73 which is secured to the wall 68 of the cover 70. As shown in FIG. 7, the support plate 65 has a rectangular opening 75 therein so that the lowermost of the sheets 11 in the stack is engaged by the suction roller 14 which, as mentioned above, moves this sheet to the left through the feed channel 71.

The suction roller 14 is mounted on the drive shaft 77 which is journalled in the bearings 78 supported on the side plates 55 and 56. The suction roller 14 is disposed near the central portion of this shaft, and includes a suction disk or rotary member 80 which is rigidly secured to the shaft 77 by the hub 81, and a stationary plate 83 which is held against rotation with respect to the member 80 by the arm 84 which slidably engages the lower support bar 60. The stationary plate 83 has a conduit secured thereto in communication with the passage 85 for supplying a vacuum to the suction outlets 87 in the rotary member 80. The passage 85 is positioned directly above the drive shaft 77 (FIG. 2) so that as the rotary member 80 is rotated with the drive shaft the passages 88 therein sequentially communicate with the passage 85, as described below.

Each of the passages 88 has two radially extending outlets 87 so that when the passage 85 is in communication therewith, a vacuum is provided in these outlets. Since the passage 85 is directly above the shaft 77, suction is communicated to the pair of outlets 87 which are directly above this shaft also, and in contact with the sheet 11. The passage 85 in the stationary plate 83 is circumferentially elongated (FIG. 13) so that at no time is the suction cut off from at least a pair of outlets 87 and therefore the suction roll 14 does not release the sheet 11 before it is fed between the feed rollers 12 and 13. In order to insure a fluid type connection between the rotary member 80 and the stationary plate 83, a disk seal 90 is provided therebetween, and the spring 91 which is interposed between the thrust bearing 92 and the collar 93 urges the components 80 and 83 together.

The four feed rollers 12, 13, 24 and 32 are substantially identical and three of them 13, 24 and 32 are movably spring mounted for movement with respect to each other so that the sheet 11 can be easily moved therebetween. As shown in FIG. 4, these spring loaded rollers extend through openings 94 in the side plates 55 and 56, and are supported in bearings 95 on one end of the arms 96 which are pivotally secured by the pins 97 to the adjacent side plates 55 or 56. The springs 98 are interposed between the stationary blocks 101 on the associated side plates 55 or 56 and the upper ends 102 of the arms 96, so that the roller mounted thereon is urged toward contact with the adjacent roller. In addition to the three fold rollers 13, 24 and 32, the left-hand sealing roller 52 is similarly mounted for movement with respect to the other sealing roller 53 to facilitate passage of the folded sheet 11 and envelope 40 therebetween. It should be understood that these movable mountings are provided on each end of the movable rollers 13, 24, 32 and 52 The four fold plates 17, 18,- 27 and 28, as well as the end plates 21 and 30 are suitably formed of rigid sheet metal and secured between the side plates 55 and 56. The fold plates 17 and 27 have the lips 17a and 27a formed at the entrance to the slots 16 and 25, respectively, to facilitate movement of the sheet 11 into these slots. Like the fold plate, the transfer plates 106 and 107 are supported between the side plates 55 and 56, and these transfer plates support the folded sheet 11 as it moves toward the stufiing mechanism.

Drive mechanism The drive mechanism positively rotates and moves each of the components of the apparatus so that, at all times, the sheet 11 and envelope 40 are precisely positioned and controlled. Thus, as shown in FIG. 3, the drive motor 110 rotates an output shaft 111 through a coupling 113, and the worm gear 114 on the output shaft 111 rotates a large gear 115 attached to roll shaft 116 so that the latter rotates at a speed somewhat less than that of the output shaft of motor 110. As shown in FIG. 4, the opposite end of the shaft 116 which has the feed roll 12 thereon, is drivingly connected to the rolls 34, 53, 77 and 118 by the drive belt 120 having the gear teeth 121 provided thereon for engaging the complementary drive pulleys 122 on the end of each of rollers 12, 34, 53, 77 and 118. The spring biased idler pulley 123 is provided for maintaining the tension on the belt 120 at all times in a conventional manner.

The other four feed rolls 13, 24, 32 and 35 are driven from the feed roll 12 through the gears 125, 126, 127 and 128, as shown in FIG. 5. Each of these gears is the same size so that they are rotated at substantially identical speeds, and the teeth 130 have suflicient pitch to permit the rolls 13, 24 and 32 to move radially with respect to each other within a limited range in order to permit the folded sheet 11 to pass therebetween. Similarly, the upper feed roll 35' is driven from the lower feed roll 34 by the meshing engagement of gears 132 and 133 mounted on one end of each of these rolls, and the suction roll 45 is driven from the upper feed roll 35 through an intermediate gear 135 which meshes with the drive gear 136 on the end of the shaft 137 on which the suction roll 45 is mounted. Moreover, the stationary sealing roll 53 drives the movable sealing roll 52 through the meshing gears 138 and 139 mounted on the ends of these shafts. Thus each of the rotating feed and suction rolls is positively interconnected and therefore driven in precise synchronized relation so that for each revolution of the suction rolls 14 and 45 a sheet is folded, stuffed, and the envelope sealed.

Envelope feeding mechanism The envelope feeding mechanism is shown in FIGS. 3, 8 and 9, and includes a reciprocating rack 140 mounted on the side plate 56 by the four guide rollers 142 which engage the upper and lower edges 143 and 144 of this rack. The rack 140 is biased toward the left (FIG. 3) by the elongated coil spring 146 which has one end secured to the side plate 56 by the fastening member 147 and the other end to the arm 148 which is integrally connected to the rack 140. The rack is moved toward the right by the cam 150 which is rigidly secured on the drive shaft 118 and engages cam follower 152 mounted on the rack 140. The cam 150 has a suitable configuration which causes the rack 140 to be reciprocated in a horizontal plane in timed relationship with the other operating components of the invention so that the envelope 40 is fed at the proper time.

The rack 140 has a plurality of gear teeth 153 thereon disposed intermediate the horizontal edges 143 and 144 of the rack 140 for engaging the similarly geared segment 155 (FIG. 9) which is pivotally mounted on the shaft 156. This shaft is in turn supported in a bearing 158 which is secured to the side plate 56, and the upper end of this shaft has another and larger gear segment 160 mounted thereon, so that it extends through the aperture 161 and oscillates in response to reciprocation of the rack 140.

The envelopes 40 are placed in the feed hopper 162 at the left end of the apparatus, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 8, on the support plate 163 between the vertical side members 164 and 165. The stack 166 is placed adjacent the end plate 167 which terminates in a feed channel 170 for guiding movement of the envelopes 40 into the stutling mechanism. As seen in FIG. 8, an elongated slot 172 is provided in the central portion of the support plate 163 so that the feed rack 173 can reciprocate therein to feed the envelopes 40 from the hopper 162 into the stufiing mechanism, as will be described.

The feed rack 173 is supported by the guide members 175 (FIG. 8) on either side thereof which are received in the L-shaped mounting flanges 176 for restricting the movement of the feed rack 173 to reciprocate in a horizontal plane. A rectangular actuator plate 177 is mounted on the lower surface of the rack 173 and extends to the left, as viewed in FIG. 8, below the support plate 163. The left edge of the plate 177 has the gear teeth 180 provided therein which are matable with the teeth 181 in the gear segment 160 so that oscillation of the latter causes the feed rack 173 to reciprocate. Near the leading edge of the feed rack is a pair of filtered suction outlets 38, which are connected to a suitable source of suction, as will be described. When the vacuum exists in the outlets 38 and the feed rack is moved forwardly, left to right in FIG. 2, the lowermost of the envelopes 40 in the stack 166 is fed into the channel 71 toward the stuffing mechanism. The rack 173 is synchronized with the other operation since its drive is tied to these other components, and thus the rack 173 reciprocated once each cycle to feed one envelope 40 into the stufling mechanism.

Stufiing and sealing mechanism As the envelope 40 is fed through the feed channel 170, it proceeds until the leading edge of the envelope flap 41 slips under the clamp 182 (FIG. 12) on the transfer plate 107 and holds the flap 41 against movement in a vertical direction. When in this position, the envelope 40 has the fold line 51 between the flap 41 and the main body of the envelope 40 aligned vertically with the nip between the sealing rollers 52 and 53, and the main body thereof is held against the support plate 163 by the suction exerted through the outlets 38 in the feed rack 173 so that the envelope is held firmly in this position.

A rigid air tube 185 is supported on the upper cross bar 57 by the bracket 187, and this tube is deformed so that it is positioned in the groove 188 provided circumferentially in the central portion of the suction roll 45. As shown in FIG. 11, the outlet 190 of this tube is positioned vertically below the shaft 137 on which the suction roll 45 is mounted, and the end portion 191 thereof is flattened to provide a horizontally elongated outlet 190 which forces air under pressure into the envelope 40 causing the latter to be opened to receive the folded sheet 11. Conventionally, the sheet 11 is of less width than the envelope 40 so that it can be easily inserted therein without contact with the opposite ends of the envelope.

Simultaneously with the movement of the envelope 40 into position, the feed rollers 34 and 35 move the folded sheet 11 in a horizontal direction above the flap 41 to position the leading edge 31 thereof into the envelope 40 before the sheet is free of the rollers 34 and 35. The suction roll 45 then grips the folded sheet 11 and forces it the remaining distance into the envelope 40. Thus when the roller 45, which is substantially identical to the suction roller 14 although the suction outlets 193 (FIG. are positioned directly below the shaft 137, has suction applied to the outlets 193 in contact with the folded sheet, the suction roll 45 grasps the sheet 11 and forces it into the envelope 40. During this operation, the envelope is held securely in position by the clamp 182 and the suction exerted through the outlets 38 in the feed rack 173. As indicated above, the suction roll 45 and its mounting are substantially identical to the suction roll 14 except for the groove 188, and the identical components thereof are designated by the like reference character.

Once the folded sheet 11 is stuffed into the envelope 40, the elongated knife 200 is moved downwardly by the actuator arms 201 on either side thereof (FIGS. 2 and 7) which are secured for angular movement on the pivot shaft 203 which extends between the side plates 55 and 56. A cam follower section 206 having a roller 207 thereon rotates the shaft 203 and the arms 201. This section engages the cam 208 on the drive shaft 77 for effecting raising and lowering of the actuator arms 201 to move the knife 200 with respect to the sealing rollers 52 and 53.

The knife 200 includes two vertical sections 211 and 212 (FIG. 7) secured between the actuator arms 201 and disposed on opposite sides of the suction roll 45 so that there is no contact with the roll 45 as the knife is moved downwardly. The lower edges 214 of the knife sections 211 and 212 are serrated so that relative movement between the envelope 40 and the blade 200 is substantially prohibited when the two are in engagement. The edges of the sections are however relatively dull so that they will not cut or otherwise damage the envelope 40.

The knife 200 moves downwardly and contacts the envelope 40 along the fold line 51 between the envelope flap 41 and the main body to force the envelope downwardly into .the nip between the sealing rolls 52 and 53, as shown in FIG. 12. These sealing rolls then grasp the stufied envelope 40 along the fold line 51 causing the remaining portion to be drawn therebetween and ejected downwardly therefrom with the flap folded to the closed position.

The inside surface of the flap 41 is provided with a heat sensitive sealing material for sealing the envelope when the flap is heated and folded against the main portion. The right-hand sealing roller (FIG. 12) is thus provided with an electric heating coil 214 for raising the temperature of the outside tubular sleeve 215 on this roll 53. In order to greatly reduce the flow of heat into other portions of the apparatus, an insulated sleeve 216 is provided between the coil 214 and the drive shaft 218 of the roll 53 so that heat flows from the coil 214 into the sleeve 215 and not through the drive shaft 218. Suitable electrical controls, not shown, are provided for adjustably controlling the temperature of this roller in accordance with that required .to seal the envelope 40. The left-hand sealing roll 52 is preferably of solid metal such as stainless steel, and is pivota-lly mounted as discussed above so that the width of the nip expands as the stuffed envelope is drawn .thereinto.

In order to facilitate the movement of the envelope 40 into the nip between the rolls 52 and 53, the suction being asserted from the outlets 38 in .the feed rack 173 is cut off at the time the knife 200 contacts the envelope 40. This is performed by a cam 220 (FIGS. 3, 6 and 7) on the drive shaft 118 which depresses the plug valve 222 against .the bias of the spring 223 in order to block the flow between the tubes 224 and 225 which supply the suction to the outlet openings 30. The upper portion of the plug valve 222 has a cam fol-lower 227 positioned thereon for frictionless engagement with the cam 220.

As the stuffed, folded and sealed envelope 40 passes between the sealing rolls 52 and 53 it falls into a storage hopper 220 which is defined by a bottom plate 231, an end plate 232, and the side walls 233 and 234, as seen in FIG. 8. The L-shaped weight 236 is slidab-ly positioned in this storage hopper 230 to insure that the envelopes 40 are stacked vertically and neatly in position. In order to move the stack of sealed envelopes to the left so that the next envelope can be easily placed in the hopper 230, the end plate 232 is provided with two rectangular openings 238 through which the spool-shaped rollers 240 on the shaft 118 project. The smaller rollers 242 are mounted near the outer periphery of the spoolshaped rollers 240 and extend beyond the periphery thereof so that rotation of the rollers 240 with the shaft 118 brings the smaller rollers 242 into contact with the stack of envelopes, thus moving them to the left (FIG. 2) and creating a space between the last envelope and the end wall 232 for receiving the next envelope from the sea-ling rollers 52 and 53. The stack 244 of envelopes 40 can easily be removed from the hopper 230 by removing the L-shaped weight 236 and withdrawing the sealed envelopes 40.

The suction or vacuum for the suction rollers 14 and 45, the outlets 38 in the feed rack 173, as well as the air pressure for the pipe is supplied by a conventional air pump 250, as shown schematically in FIG. 2. This pump is provided with suitable electrical controls, not

7 shown, for regulating operation thereof, and these controls may or may not be tied electrically to the switch that operates the drive motor 110.

An alternate embodiment for wetting the flap of the envelope is shown in FIG. and includes an absorbent pad 255 afiixed to the knife blades 211 and 212 for wetting the glue on a conventional envelope flap. This pad is kept moist through a wick enclosed in a water-tight hose (not shown) which extends between the pad 255 and a stationary reservoir (not shown) so that the water pad is maintained in a wetted state through capillary action.

Thus a device has been provided which is fully automatic in operation so that the sheets 11 are stuffed and sealed in the envelopes 40. At each instant in this operation, the sheet and envelope are positively positioned or controlled by one or more components of the device so that an addressed and folded sheet may be accurately and properly stuffed into a windowed envelope. This entire folding and stufling machine is comparatively light and small so that it can be easily transported and positioned on a table top or the like. Moreover, the stacks of sheets 11 and the envelopes 40, when empty as well as stuffed and sealed, can be replenished in or removed from the machine during operation thereof without stopping the machine. The device may also be adapted for use with automatic machinery for supplying the sheet 11 or envelope 40 so that a suitable transfer mechanism is supplied for placing the sheet or envelope in the stacks 15 or 166.

While the form of apparatus herein described constitutes a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise form of apparatus, and that changes may be made erein without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined .in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A compact sheet folder and envelope inserter comprising, a frame, a sheet hopper on said frame for receiving a stack of sheets to be folded and stuffed into envelopes, folding means on said frame for automatically folding the sheets to a predetermined size for insertion in the envelopes, means for feeding said sheets into said folding means from said hopper, first transfer means for moving the folded sheets horizontally from said folding means, an envelope hopper for storing envelopes in a horizontal plane with the flap facing upwardly, second transfer means for moving an envelope from said hopper to a stufiing station, said second transfer means being operable to hold said envelope in said stuffing station, said first transfer means operable to position the leading edge of the folded sheet into the envelope, stufing means for forcing the folded sheet entirely into the envelope, sealing means for releasing said second transfer means from the envelope and for sealing the flap to the main body of the envelope and transferring the stuffed envelope to a discharge hopper.

2. A compact sheet folder and envelope stufier comprising, a frame, a sheet hopper on said frame for receiving a stack of sheets to be folded and stuffed into envelopes, folding means on said frame for automatically folding a sheet of paper to a predetermined size for insertion in the envelopes, means for feeding said sheets into said folding means from said hopper, first transfer means for moving the folded sheet horizontally from said folding means, a hopper for storing envelopes in a horizontal plane with the flap facing upwardly, second transfer means including a reciprocating rack positioned below the lowermost of the envelopes in said hopper for moving an envelope from said hopper to a stufiing station, said second transfer means having suction means operable to grasp said lower-most envelope for transfer to said stuffing station, said first transfer means operable to position the leading edge of the folded sheet into the envelope, holding means for holding the envelope at said stuffing station, stuffing means for forcing the folded sheet entirely into the envelope, and sealing means for releasing said holding means from the envelope and for sealing the flap to the main body of the envelope.

3. A compact sheet folder and envelope stutfer comprising, a frame, a sheet hopper on said frame for receiving a stack of sheets to be folded and stuffed into envelopes, folding means on said frame for automatically fold-ing a sheet of paper to a predetermined size for insertion in the envelope, first transfer means for moving the folded sheet horizontally from said stack to said folding means, said first transfer means including a first suction roll mounted below said stack of sheets in contact with the lowermost of the sheets, a pair of feed rollers spaced horizontally a predetermined distance from said first suction roll for receiving the sheets from said suction roll, said first suction roll having a plurality of suction ports closely spaced in the periphery thereof so that for each revolution of said first suction roll a sheet is transferred to said feed rollers and then released, a hopper for storing envelopes in a horizontal plane with the flap facing upwardly, second transfer means including a recip rocating rack positioned below the lowermost of the envelopes in said hopper for moving an envelope from said hopper to a stuffing station, said second transfer means having suction means operable to grasp said lower-most envelope for transfer to said stufiing station, said holding means operable to position the leading edge of the folded sheet into the envelope, holding means for holding the envelope at said stuffing station, stuffing means for forcing the folded sheet entirely into the envelope, and sealing means for sealing the flap to the main body of the envelope.

4. Apparatus as defined in claim 3 wherein said flat suction roll includes a rotary section secured to a drive shaft and having said suction ports therein, a stationary section locked to said frame against angular movement and free to move axially with respect to said rotary section, bias means urging said sections together, means con necting a source of vacuum to said rotary and stationary sections, and passage means in said stationary section for connecting the vacuum to said suction outlets when said outlets are in a substantially vertical position to grasp the lowermost sheet of paper.

5. Apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein said stuffing means includes a second suction roll substantially identical to said first suction roll, said second suction roll being mounted above the envelope in the stufling station for grasping the folded sheet after its leading edge has been inserted into said envelope to force the sheet the remaining distance into said envelope.

6. A compact sheet folder and envelope stuifer comprising, a frame, a sheet hopper on said frame for receiving a stack of sheets to be folded and stuffed into envelopes, folding means on said frame for automatically folding a sheet of paper to a predetermined size for insertion in the envelopes, first transfer means for moving the folded sheet horizontally from said folding means, a hopper for storing envelopes in a horizontal plane with the flap facing upwardly, second transfer means including a reciprocating rack positioned below the lowermost of the envelopes in said hopper for moving an envelope from said hopper to a stuffing station, said second transfer means having suction means operable to grasp said lowermost envelope for transfer to said stuffing station, said first transfer means operable to position the leading edge of the folded sheet into the envelope, holding means for holding the envelope at said stuffing station, stuffing means for'forcing the folded sheet entirely into the envelope, said stuffing means including a suction roll mounted above an envelope when in said stufiing station, said suction roll having a plurality of suction ports closely spaced in the periphery thereof so that for each revolution of said suction roll a folded sheet is forced entirely into an envelope, and sealing means for sealing the flap to the main body of the envelope.

7. Apparatus as defined in claim 6 wherein said suction roll includes a rotary section secured to a drive shaft and having said suction ports therein, the outer periphery of said suction roll being positioned adjacent a folded sheet which has had its leading edge positioned in an envelope at said stuffing station, a stationary section locked to said frame against angular movement and free to move axially with respect to said rotary section, bias means urging said sections together, means connecting a source of vacuum to said rotary and stationary sections, and passage means in said stationary section for connecting the vacuum to said suction outlets when said outlets are in a substantially vertical position above the folded sheet to force the same into the associated envelope.

8. A compact sheet folder and envelope stulfer comprising, a frame, a sheet hopper on said frame for receiving a stack of sheets to be folded and stuffed into envelopes, folding means on said frame for automatically folding a sheet of paper to a predetermined size for insertion in the envelopes, means for feeding said sheets into said folding means from said sheet hopper, first transfer means for moving the folded sheet horizontally from said folding means, a second hopper for storing envelopes in a horizontal plane with the flap facing upwardly, second transfer means including a reciprocating rack positioned below the lowermost of the envelopes in said second hopper for moving an envelope from said hopper to a stuffing station, said second transfer means including a reciprocating rack disposed below said hopper, means defining a slot in said second hopper aligned with at least a portion of said rack, means defining a suction port in said rack for grasping the lowermost of said envelopes in said slot and sliding it horizontally to said stufiing station at a position spaced from said hopper, means for effecting reciprocation of said rack in timed relation with the movement of said sheet so that the envelope reaches said stuffing station prior to the folded sheet, said first transfer means operable to position the leading edge of the folded sheet into the envelope, holding means for holding the envelope at said stufiing station, stutfing means for forcing the folded sheet entirely into the envelope, and sealing means for sealing the flap to the main body of the envelope.

9. A compact sheet folder and envelope stuifer comprising, a frame, a sheet hopper on said frame for receiving a stack of sheets to be folded and stuffed into envelopes, folding means on said frame for automatically folding a sheet of paper to a predetermined size for insertion in the envelopes, first transfer means for moving the folded sheet horizontally from said folding means, a hopper for storing envelopes in a horizontal plane with the flap facing upwardly, second transfer means including a reciprocating rack positioned below the lowermost of the envelopes in said hopper for moving an envelope from said hopper to a stuffing station, said second transfer means having suction means operable to grasp said lowermost envelope for transfer to said stufiing station, said first transfer means operable to position the leading edge of the folded sheet into the envelope, stufling means for forcing the folded sheet entirely into the envelope, said stuffing station including a pair of sealing rolls having a vertical nip therebetween, holding means for holding an envelope at said stuffing station with the line between the flap and body of the envelope aligned vertically above said nip, said holding means including said suction port in said rack for holding the body of the envelope in position and a clip on said frame for holding the flap horizontal, and sealing means including said sealing rolls for sealing the flap to the main body of the envelope.

10. Apparatus as defined in claim 9 wherein an air tube is mounted on said frame above an envelope at the stufiing station, said air tube having an outlet nozzle for directing a jet of air into the body of an envelope at said stuffing station to open the body of the envelope for insertion of the folded sheet.

11. Apparatus as defined in claim 10 wherein said stuffing means includes knife means positioned above said station for engaging the envelope along said line to force the envelope into said nip between said sealing rolls, means for operating said knife means in timed relation with said second transfer means so that said knife means is actuated subsequent to the insertion of the folded sheet into the envelope.

12. Apparatus as defined in claim 2 wherein outlet hoppers are provided for receiving the stuffed and sealed envelopes from said sealing means, said hopper including a bottom plate and an end wall, a weight mounted on said bottom plate spaced from said end wall for holding the stuffed envelopes in an upright orderly position, means defining a vertical slot in said back wall, a wheel mounted on a shaft for rotation on a horizontal axis and having a portion of the periphery extending through said slot, a smaller roll mounted near the periphery of said wheel and having a portion thereof extending radially beyond the periphery of said spool-shaped roller for engaging the stuffed envelopes in said hopper to move them away from said end plate thus creating a space for receiving the next stuffed envelope from said sealing rolls, and means for rotating said wheel in timed relation wtih said sealing means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 12/1955 Kern 53-266 12/1959 Kummer 53117 

1. A COMPACT SHEET FOLDER AND ENVELOPE INSERTER COMPRISING, A FRAME, A SHEET HOPPER ON SAID FRAME FOR RECEIVING A STACK OF SHEETS TO BE FOLDED AND STUFFED INTO ENVELOPES, FOLDING MEANS ON SAID FRAME FOR AUTOMATICALLY FOLDING THE SHEETS TO A PREDETERMINED SIZE FOR INSERTION IN THE ENVELOPES, MEANS FOR FEEDING SAID SHEETS INTO SAID FOLDING MEANS FROM SAID HOPPER, FIRST TRANSFER MEANS FOR MOVING THE FOLDED SHEETS HORIZONTALLY FROM SAID FOLDING MEANS, AN ENVELOPE HOPPER FOR STORING ENVELOPES IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE WITH THE FLAP FACING UPWARDLY, SECOND TRANSFER MEANS FOR MOVING AN ENVELOPE FROM SAID HOPPER TO A STUFFING STATION, SAID SECOND TRANSFER MEANS BEING OPERABLE TO HOLD SAID SECOND TRANSFER MEANS BEING SAID FIRST TRANSFER MEANS OPERABLE TO POSITION THE LEADING EDGE OF THE FOLDED SHEET INTO THE ENVELOPE, STUFFING MEANS FOR FORCING THE FOLDED SHEET ENTIRELY INTO THE ENVELOPE, SEALING MEANS FOR RELEASING SAID SECOND TRANSFER MEANS FROM THE ENVELOPE AND FOR SEALING THE FLAP TO THE MAIN BODY OF THE ENVELOPE AND TRANSFERRING THE STUFFED ENVELOPE TO A DISCHARGE HOPPER. 